School District's Crisis Team responds in times of grief

On Thursday afternoon when West Port Principal Jayne Ellspermann learned a student had been killed. The veteran principal immediately requested the district's Crisis Team.

By Joe CallahanStaff writer

It was Thursday afternoon after West Port High's dismissal when Principal Jayne Ellspermann learned a student had been killed.The veteran principal immediately requested the district's Crisis Team to be ready Friday morning to counsel some of the school's 2,500 students.Angel David Guevara Arenas, 20, died when his BMW lost control and veered into oncoming Southwest 20th Street traffic. Two other students were seriously injured.Like clockwork, the six-person Crisis Team — three psychologists and three social workers — arrived at the Southwest 80th Avenue school.Ellspermann has only four school counselors and needed more professionals to help grieving students.Teachers looked for grief-stricken teens needing crisis intervention. Though most students didn't need help, a "handful" struggled."Teachers are our front line of defense," Ellspermann said.The students who were crying more than others or were despondent, attended some grief counseling.Each year on average, the team responds six times to help children cope with a tragedy."Some situations are handled by the school," said Matt Lane, the director of the psychological and social work services. "Other times, like last week, principals request the Crisis Team."The team sets up space at the school, usually a private office to help a few students or the media center to help larger numbers, Lane said.After North Marion Middle School student Margay Schee, 13, was killed in a fiery bus accident in 2008, the Crisis Team responded in full force to counsel students and bus drivers. The goal is to teach healthy ways to deal with a crisis."In many cases, it is the first time they (children) learn to handle grief and adversity," said Terry McCray, a lead social worker. "It is important that we do it well."And it can be a very daunting, yet rewarding, job."We walk into the schools when everyone's emotions are very raw," McCray said. "We let them talk, let them vent and look for the warning signs."Students experiencing extreme grief may stay with counselors the entire school day. Crisis counseling is only a small part of their responsibility.The department — which consists of 16 psychologists, three diagnostic experts, 14 social workers, 10 social work assistants, a supervisor and a couple clerks — work daily with schools.A psychologist and a social worker are each assigned about four schools, which they visit weekly. The workers help school administrators identify the root causes of a child's problem, whether academic, attendance or behavioral.Usually the root causes are problems at home, from no running water and electricity to incarcerated parents or drug use in the home.The department serves 41,000 students at 51 schools annually. While the National Association of School Psychologists recommends one school psychologist for every 750 students, Marion County has one for every 2,562.Lane said the department made 2,043 home visits last school year, or roughly 85 visits per social worker and assistant.The main role of a psychologist is to evaluate thousands of Exceptional Student Education students, from gifted to those with learning disabilities.Before the recession hit in late 2007, the department had about 58 employees. Through attrition, the district cut one psychologist, four social workers, three social work assistants and three diagnostic experts. In all, the department has been cut by 17 percent.And as the economy has gotten worse, the need has been getting greater. The end result is that little prevention is underway and counselors only have time for the most severe cases."What happens at home, spills into the classroom," said Juan Lopez, a district psychologist. "We deal with a wide range of issues, from behavioral to mental health. We deal with everything that keeps a child from learning."Contact Joe Callahan at 867-4113 or joe.callahan@starbanner.com. Follow him on Twitter at JoeOcalaNews.